A big summer rebuild is coming for Everton.

With 15 first-team players, including loanees, set to be out of contract at the end of this season, the task before manager David Moyes and new chief executive Angus Kinnear, who will join the club from the same job at Leeds United of the Championship in June, is considerable. Daunting, even, if you look at the scale of what needs to be done.

But Everton will look at the 2025 off-season as an opportunity to fashion their squad in a new image. For the first time in a while — perhaps since the early days of Farhad Moshiri’s tenure — they will be in a position to invest under the new ownership of The Friedkin Group.

This is a much-needed chance to capitalise and push on. But to do so, Everton will need to be smart.

There is one obvious point to make: even with a much bigger budget, it would be impossible to replace all 15 of those players who could leave in the looming summer window. As such, it would be prudent to at least retain some of those whose deals are due to expire.

Here is The Athletic’s go at mapping out the state of play and what should come next.

We’ve started from the very basic and uncontroversial premise that defender Mason Holgate and striker Neal Maupay will not be kept on. Holgate is on a season-long loan at Championship side West Bromwich Albion, while Maupay’s similar spell with French top-flight club Marseille contains an obligation to buy.

So, tin hat on, and let us know what you think of it all in the comments.

Goalkeepers

(Players in bold are due to be out of contract this summer)

All of the debate here surrounds the backup options. Jordan Pickford probably has the Everton starting jersey as long as he wants it, but elsewhere at this position there is uncertainty. Joao Virginia’s contract expires at the end of the season but contains a club option for a further year, and Asmir Begovic, who turns 38 in June, is also into the final four months of his deal.

Verdict: With so much for Everton to do elsewhere this summer, rocking the boat here wouldn’t make a lot of sense. Virginia and Begovic are competent, low-cost reserves and provide decent support to Pickford. Both should be retained, if they are willing to extend.

Defenders

Let’s start with the two veteran full-backs. Club captain Seamus Coleman, 36, remains a valuable presence behind the scenes but has made just three Premier League appearances this season, largely due to injury. Ashley Young, meanwhile, has provided useful versatility.

Moyes has already spoken of his desire to keep Coleman on in some capacity next season and Young has intimated he would like to continue playing for a further year, though he’ll be 40 in July, but Everton do need to freshen up in the full-back positions.

Michael Keane has seen limited minutes since Moyes replaced Sean Dyche in January and is a high earner. The 32-year-old had winter-window interest from clubs in the Premier League and second-tier Championship, while sides in MLS and the Saudi Pro League are also monitoring his situation. A departure may well suit all parties.

Verdict: Everton should see this summer as an opportunity to improve their stock at full-back, where they need more dynamism and creativity. If Coleman cannot play on, he should be moved into a coaching role, potentially with the club’s academy. Options on both sides of the pitch are needed to compete with Nathan Patterson and Vitalii Mykolenko, while in the middle Keane should also be replaced by a younger, lower-cost alternative.

Midfielders

There are several key decisions to make in midfield this summer. Idrissa Gueye and Abdoulaye Doucoure have been stalwarts in recent years, with the former my pick as Everton’s player of the season so far.

As first reported by The Athletic, the club’s option to extend Doucoure’s deal has already expired, but that does not preclude them from making him another offer, potentially on reduced wages and/or longer terms. The 32-year-old has also had interest from Saudi Arabia in recent months.

Orel Mangala had been a solid performer before an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) knee injury against Brighton & Hove Albion in January ended his season. His loan from Lyon of Ligue 1 expires in the summer, and there was no purchase option written into the deal.

Fellow loanee Carlos Alcaraz, Everton’s only winter-window addition, has a €15million (£12.6m, $16.4m) mandatory purchase clause in his contract should he make nine starts for them this season having been borrowed from Brazilian side Flamengo. So far, he has managed three and the terms of his loan give the club control over whether that obligatory clause is activated.

James Garner will move into the final year of his deal over the summer, but Everton have a club option to extend by a further 12 months. They have been keen to retain the 24-year-old midfielder, although further discussions are likely to take place during the off-season.

Verdict: Re-signing Gueye is a no-brainer, and Doucoure would also be a useful player to have in the squad next season if a deal can be struck. Alcaraz has obvious potential and buying him would not break the bank, but Mangala’s unfortunate injury makes re-signing him too risky.

So agree an extension for Garner and give 18-year-old Harrison Armstrong, currently shining on loan at Championship side Derby County, pre-season to stake a claim.

Everton will need at least one top-quality addition for the role behind the striker — an area in which they are sorely lacking.

Wingers

Everton know they are short on the wings, particularly on the right side.

Jaden Philogene (who moved from Aston Villa to Ipswich Town), Tom Fellows (West Brom) and Ernest Nuamah (Lyon) were all targets in January, while outgoing director of football Kevin Thelwell had also tracked Leeds’ Willy Gnonto over several windows. The aim was to recruit another permanent option on the flanks, particularly with just Dwight McNeil and Iliman Ndiaye contracted beyond the end of this season.

Moyes has already told loanees Jesper Lindstrom and Jack Harrison they will need to deliver more goals and assists in the coming weeks if they are to have a chance of staying. Neither has cemented a place in the starting XI, and between them have just two goal contributions (one Harrison goal and a Lindstrom assist) in 50 Premier League appearances this season.

Of the two, it is Harrison who has shown more signs of life in recent weeks. He has improved under Moyes and kept his place against West Ham United on Saturday, while Lindstrom made way for Alcaraz.

Harrison is settled on Merseyside as he nears the end of his second season on loan to Everton and will hope to stake a claim for a permanent move over the coming months. Leeds’ likely promotion to the Premier League means a third loan is almost certainly off the table. Lindstrom’s loan from Napoli contains a purchase option of around £18million, but that looks too high based on what he has produced so far.

Verdict: Everton ideally need two permanent summer additions here, and the focus should be on pacy right-sided options.

Attackers

Another position in which change might well be coming.

Dominic Calvert-Lewin, the most senior striker on the books, has so far not signed a new deal. Talks took place towards the end of last season, with the England international at that point reluctant to agree to an extension. Moyes, though, has spoken positively about the 28-year-old’s ability and the door is not completely closed just yet to continuing an Everton career that would reach 10 years in summer 2026, even if time is running out.

Armando Broja’s season-long loan from Chelsea initially showed promise, but a string of injuries have derailed his progress. That deal contains a permanent option at around £30million. Having returned to action on Saturday after being out since the middle of January, the English-born Albania international will have to go on some run over the next two months to make an outlay of that kind worthwhile.

Beto and 20-year-old Youssef Chermiti are the other options, but with Moyes usually only lining up with one centre-forward in his team, there appears little sense in having four senior strikers on the books next season.

Verdict: Calvert-Lewin’s situation depends on his wage demands and willingness to re-sign. Broja looks talented but the 23-year-old is yet to stay fit and prove he is worth paying a significant fee for. At least one new striker will almost certainly be needed this summer.

(Top photo: Marc Atkins/Getty Images)

Patrick Boyland has been The Athletic’s Everton correspondent since 2019. Prior to joining the company, he worked for ESPN, Mail Online and press agency Sportsbeat, where he covered numerous major sporting events. Boyland’s views on Everton have been sought out by local and national media, while he is also a regular on a number of podcasts focusing on the club. Follow him on Twitter: @Paddy_Boyland